But they can’t anybody. And they seem to have come to the conclusion that,if you want something done, do it yourself. So they’re going to write both screenplays to their own liking - and it’s possible, just possible, that Ian McKellen is going to figure into the second move as the primary hero.

Which makes sense. What characters could possibly fit into the niche of a movie that doesn’t have a book to flow from? There are stories by J.R.R. Tolkein that could fit the gap, sure, but they’re little more than notations in the larger work. The beefiest story they can fit into it is Gandalf’s efforts to expel a necromancer from a certain set of woods - a necromancer that, as it turns out, is Sauron, the antagonist of the three Lord of the Rings movies.

Who knows. Either way, McKellen is happy to play Gandalf twice more. Here’s hoping he gets the chance.

It’s still an impressive list nonetheless, and worthy of note here.

Displaced (2007)
Neverwas (2007)
Stardust (2007)
The Golden Compass (2007)
Flushed Away (2006)
X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
The Da Vinci Code (2006)
Asylum (2005)
Emile (2005)
Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005)
The Magic Roundabout (2005)
Macbeth (2004)
Othello (2004)
X2: X-Men United (2003)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(2002)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Cirque du Soleil Journey of Man (2000)
X-Men (2000)
David Copperfield (1999)
The Book That Wrote Itself (1999)
Apt Pupil (1998)
Gods and Monsters (1998)
Swept From the Sea (1998)
Bent (1997)
A Bit of Scarlet (1997)
Cold Comfort Farm (1996)
Jack and Sarah (1996)
Rasputin (1996)
Heaven’s a Drag (1995)
Restoration (1995)
Richard III (1995)
Thin Ice (1995)
I’ll Do Anything (1994)
The Shadow (1994)
And the Band Played On (1993)
Camp Christmas (1993)
Six Degrees of Separation (1993)
The Ballad of Little Jo (1993)
The Last Action Hero (1993)
Scandal (1989)
Windmills of the Gods (1987)
Plenty (1985)
Zina (1985)
Loving Walter (1983)
The Keep (1983)
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982)
Priest of Love (1981)
Alfred the Great (1969)

So today we look instead to slightly happier role, that of Ian McKellen as Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings trilogy of series. Gandalf is one of the series’ central characters, and the story wouldn’t be the same without him.

Also known as Gandalf the Grey or Mithrandir, Gandalf is a wizard. He’s often the trigger that sets off the events of the books and the movies; from his first visit with Bilbo in The Hobbit to his announcement that Frodo must take the ring to the elves in The Fellowship of the Ring, he’s the guy you go to if you need direction in your life. He’ll gladly tell you what to do.

And McKellen plays him as such in all three movies. His impressive acting skills make a normally wizened old man into an impressive figure, a man to be respected and feared. Yet he’s also an infinitely kind man, and can change from a raging fury to gentle happiness in the span of a second. He’s a little flippant, sometimes, but McKellen’s good enough that Gandalf never comes off as a lunatic.

McKellen appeared in all three Lord of the Rings movies, and if the accolades for his role are any indication (he received an Academy Award nomination for the part) he’ll be back in the upcoming Hobbit movies.

But Magneto’s sphere of influence was increased drastically as of the turn of the century, thanks largely to one man and one trilogy of movies. The man is Ian McKellan, and the trilogy is called X-Men.

McKellan appeared in all three movies as Magneto, generally as the principal villain against which the X-Men were forced to battle (though he somewhat shared the spotlight in the second and third movies). And he did the job flawlessly. Despite being much older than the comics Magneto McKellan made the role his own, dominating his fellow mutants with nothing more than his commanding voice and simple yet brutal hand gestures.

(For those of you who don’t know, Magneto can manipulate metal. Any metal. He’s a powerful guy.)

McKellan had some of the best scenes in all three of the movies and delivered with such power and gravity that he’s the guy you love to hate.

And comic book fans, don’t worry: this isn’t the end for McKellan. If all goes well he’ll be returning as Magneto in a spin-off movie based entirely around the character.

Apparently he can, and all it takes is for Sir Ian to play himself. In a cameo role for the British smash-hit comedy series Extras, McKellen advises main extra Andy Millman (played by The Office boss Ricky Gervais) on how he achieves his award-winning performances.

In the skit McKellen offers simple advice: directors tell him to play a part, and he then pretends to be that person. He reads his lines from a script and stands where he’s told to stand. He imparts all this obvious knowledge as though it’s arcane in nature, proving that even in seriousness McKellen can make a mockery of himself for a few laughs.

Here’s a clip of Ian Mckellen in Extras:

Ian McKellen is set to play the king himself, reprising his on-stage role for the silver screen. He’s expected to bring all his years of expertise to bear on a difficult role: he’s expected to portray the slow slide of King Lear into madness as he loses his kingdom, his notoriety and, most devastatingly, the love of his three daughters.

Set to air some time in 2008, Ian McKellen King Lear is sure to prove yet another gem in the crown of McKellen’s extensive career. Keep your TV schedules open.

When the question was posed to McKellen he responded saying, “Yes, I will, if Peter Jackson and I have anything to do with it, he being the producer and me being, on the whole, a very lucky actor.”, also adding that “Encouragingly, Peter and (partner) Fran Walsh have told me they couldn’t imagine The Hobbit without their original Gandalf.”

A director hasn’t been finalised for the production, but speculation has it that it will be Guillermo del Toro, director of Hellboy and Pan’s Labyrinth. Peter Jackson will be the executive producer of The Hobbit, which is believed to be a two part movie.